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CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – In October 2024, Dafnie Nacalaban’s voice during a long distance call carried the excitement of hope. She told her sister in the rural village of Dansolihon in Cagayan de Oro, about her plans to return home for Christmas.
It was going to be a surprise reunion, she teased, dodging pleas for her to specify a date, recalled her older sister, Michael Nacalaban-Linsahan.
Two months later, that hope was shattered. Dafnie’s family learned that the overseas Filipino worker (OFW) had been murdered in Kuwait, allegedly by her employer. Her decomposing body was found buried in a yard – a graveyard for a dream that began with so much promise for the impoverished Kagay-anon and her family.
For Dafnie, the journey abroad was never about luxury. It was about survival, about lifting her family from the binds of poverty in Mindanao.
As the second youngest of nine siblings, she bore the quiet determination of someone who wanted more for her loved ones.
“She just wanted her daughter to finish her studies,” said Linsahan.
Sacrifice
Dafnie’s life, like that of many OFWs, was defined by sacrifice. With only a high school education, her prospects at home were limited to low-paying menial jobs that barely covered her family’s basic needs. So, she first worked in Jordan for two years before trying her luck in Kuwait in 2019.
Michael said her sister had wanted to help their parents when they were still alive, and when they passed, her focus turned to her daughter.
She was a kind and caring sister who constantly checked on her family members in Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga del Sur, said Michael.
Despite the hardships, Dafnie never let her struggles define her. She spoke often of her dream to build a house in Barangay Dansolihon, a symbol of stability for a family that knew little of it.
But her optimism may have masked a grueling reality. She never mentioned problems with her employer, a silence her family now agonizes over.
“There are different stories we are hearing, and [some people] were blaming the family for not monitoring her. But we were monitoring,” Michael told Rappler, adding that Dafnie often explained her unresponsiveness by saying she was with her employer.
Tragic end
The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) broke the devastating news to Dafnie’s family in Molave, Zamboanga del Sur, where her 14-year-old daughter lives.
“When she called, she was crying,” Michael recounted the phone conversation she had with Dafnie’s 14-year-old daughter who called from Molave. “I asked her to clarify, and [she said], ‘My mother was killed.’”
“After that, we did not know what to do,” Michael told Rappler.
The family’s grief deepened when they learned of Dafnie’s unmarked burial site, an unsettling reminder of the perils Filipino workers endure overseas.
Dafnie’s siblings initially wished for her final resting place to be in Cagayan de Oro, where she was born and raised. However, they yielded to the request of her immediate family in Molave, Zamboanga del Sur, to bring her remains there.
Call for justice
The grieving family urged the government to ensure justice for Dafnie’s death and expedite the repatriation of her remains. They also sought clarity on the motive for the crime.
The Department of Migrant Workers’ legal team is in Kuwait and coordinating with local authorities on the investigation.
According to Cagayan de Oro 2nd District Representative Rufus Rodriguez, the government has tapped a Kuwaiti lawyer to study the case and prosecute suspects. At least two suspects were reported to be in the custody of Kuwaiti authorities.
Rodriguez said reports that Dafnie was buried in a garden indicated that there was an attempt to conceal the crime.
Advocates from the Samahan ng mga Domestic Helpers sa Gitnang Silangan (Sandigan) have condemned Dafnie’s death and called on the government to address the root causes of forced migration by creating local industries.
“If there are decent jobs and living wages here in our country, our migrant Filipinos would no longer need to work abroad and endure the abuses,” Sandigan said.
Nacalaban’s murder has sparked renewed calls to abolish the kafala system, criticized for enabling the exploitation of migrant workers in the Gulf states.
The system links workers’ legal status to their employers, limiting their freedom and exposing them to abuses like withheld wages and violence. Groups like Sandigan said the system creates conditions for exploitation.
The group called on the government to enforce stricter oversight of recruitment agencies, improve agreements with host countries, and create more jobs locally to reduce reliance on overseas work.
The Commission on Human Rights emphasized that no Filipino should face harm while seeking a better future abroad.
“The Commission, pursuant to its mandate, stands in solidarity with all efforts to secure justice for the victim, and will continue to monitor the government’s compliance with laws and treaties that pertain to the protection of Filipino migrant workers’ rights,” it said. – Rappler.com
